Soap receptacle



Oct. 10, 1939., GUTHMANN 2,175,753

SOAP RECEPTACLE Filed June 17, 1938 Eager-a9 Y Wma'm Patented Oct. 10, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

\ The principal object of this invention is to provide a soap receptacle of generally improved characteristics, and one that will meet in fuller degree than do the receptacles of the prior art the multiple requirements for a toilet accessory of this class.

A specific object of the invention is to provide a soap receptacle scientifically designed to combine maximum simplicity and compactness of form with high functional efliciency, in the respects that the soap is retained substantially positively against accidental displacement by novel means affording maximum accessibility both for insertion and withdrawal of the soap from the receptacle, and is maintained at all times in excellent condition.

Another specific object is to provide a multicompartment receptacle of convenient and compact form adapted to hold in segregated relation a plurality of different brands of soap, and 'affording further easy access for removal and re placement of a desired brand.

In this latter respect, a further object of the invention, broadly stated, is to provide a soap receptacle that shall be well adapted for use in rooming houses, institutions and the like, or in the home where a common wash room is employed by a pluralityof individuals, said receptacle contributing materially to sanitation andcomfort by affording in a single compact structure efficient and simple means for maintaining a plurality of individual cakes of soap separate one from another.

Still another specific object of the invention is to provide a novel form of soap receptacle wherein the means for supporting the soap also functions as a retaining means precluding accidental displacement of the soap from the receptacle, said receptacle thereby possessing certain functional advantages hereinafter described.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a soap receptacle combining all of the aforesaid characteristics which in principle is adapted for efficient and economical manufacture from any of the materials and in any of the different types conventionally employed for accessories of this class.

The invention further resides in certain structural details and arrangements hereinafter de- 50 scribed and illustrated in the attached drawing,

in which:

Figure 1 is a view in perspective of a multicompartment soap receptacle made in accord ance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the receptacle;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33, Fig. 2, and

Fig. 4 is a front elevational view illustrating a modification within the scope of the invention.

With reference to Figs. 1 to 3 of the drawing, the receptacle that I have therein disclosed for 5 the purposeof illustrating the principle of the invention is of the wall fixture type, and consists of an integral body I of ceramic material comprising at the back of the fixture an upstanding flange 2 adapted as shown in Fig. 3 to lie flat 10 against a wall surface 3, and having apertures 4 for reception of retaining screws 5. Extending outwardly from the flange 2 and from a point adjacent the lower end of the latter is a base plate 6, and this plate, which forms the primary support for the soap, extends upwardly towards its outer edge at an inclination to the horizontal, this involving an important functional feature of the receptacle, as hereinafter described. In the present instance, the forward surface I of the back flange 2, or that portion of the surface which adjoins the rear edge of the plate 6, is formed on a plane at right angles to the plane of the plate.

At each side edge of the plate 6 is an upstanding flange, 8 and 9 respectively, which at their rear ends join the side edges of the flange 2. The flanges 8 and 9 extend upwardly above the plane of the plate 6, and preferably their upper edges are rounded from front to rear, as illustrated. Also extending upwardly from the plate 6 in intermediate positions are two flanges H and l2, these flanges preferably being uniformly spaced from each other and from the side flanges 8 and 9, and forming with the latter three compartments, the bottoms of which are constituted b the plate 6 and the rear walls by the flange 2. The flanges II and I2 preferably are joined at their rear ends to the flange 2, and the upper edges of the flanges H and 12 are preferably of curved contour, as illustrated.

In each compartment and at the juncture of the plate 6 with the rear flange 2 is one or more apertures [3 which give access from the individual compartments to the space below the plate 6, and in the present instance, the lower edge of the flange 2 is formed with a forwardly extending offset M which forms a trough l5 directly below the apertures I3. The bottom Wall of the trough I5 is provided with one or more openings E5.

The side flanges 8 and 9, as illustrated in the drawing, extend downwardly to the lower edge of the back flange 2, and the lower edges of the side flanges extend at right angles to the rear face of the flange 2 so that when the fixture is secured to the wall, as shown in Fig. 3, the lower edges of the sides of the fixture are substantlally horizontal. The forward edge of the plate 8 is provided with a depending flange or apron H which at the ends joins the forward edges of the side flanges 8 and 9, and the lower edge of the apron ll extends horizontally and in alignment with the lower edges of the said side flanges.

The individual compartments defined by the intermediate flanges H and I2 and by the side flanges 8 and 9, as described above, preferably are of a width slightly greater than the more or less standardized normal thickness of the conventional cake of soap, and are adapted to receive the individual cakes in an upright position, as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3, wherein the soap cakes are indicated in broken lines. The depth of the compartments from front to rear is preferably somewhat less than the more or less standardized length of the conventional soap cake, so that when the cake is new and is inserted in the receptacle, the forward ends thereof will project slightly beyond the forward edge of the fixture, as shown in Fig. 3. When inserted in the receptacle with one longitudinal side surface resting upon the plate 6 and with the rear end of the cake bearing against the inclined surface of the rear flange 2, the cake will assume an inclined position wherein the center of gravity of the cake tends to retain it in place in the receptacle. When the cake is wet, it will tend by gravity to assume this normal position, and there is no tendency for the cake to become accidentally displaced from the receptacle. It will be noted that by reason of the novel construction, the plate 6 by reason of its inclination has the dual function of supporting the cake and also of retaining it in the receptacle, and that there is no requirement for a retaining flange at the front of the compartment, which is left free and open for reception or removal of the soap in or from the receptacle.

The construction is also highly favorable to maintenance of the soap in good condition, in that any moisture entering the receptacle with the soap will drain down the inclined plate 6 to the rear of the compartments and will pass through the drain apertures Hi to the underlying trough I 5 from which it may pass freely through the apertures I8 into the sink or washstand above which the soap receptacle is normally lo cated.

To facilitate drainage of water to the rear of the compartments and to the apertures I 3, I prefer to form the upper surface of the base plate 5 with a series of longitudinal grooves 611 which terminate short of the back flange 2 to thereby provide a cross channel So at the rear of the base plate in which the apertures l3 are located. The grooves 60. and channel 6b are shallow to facilitate cleaning, but are of suflicient depth to retain the edges of the soap cakes when the latter become thin so as to support the thin cakes in a relatively upright position against the partition or side flanges, as indicated'in the left-hand compartment in Fig. 2. The forward face of the back flange 2 may be similarly provided with upwardly extending grooves, not shown, if desired.

By provision of the trough I5, this drainage water is prevented from flowing to and down the wall to which the fixture may be attached, and the location of the discharge openings H5 at the forward end of the trough I5 insures a discharge of the drainage water at a point remote to the wall surface and above the underlying sink. In the event that it is necessary to install the fixture in a position remote to a washstand or other receptacle to which the drainage from the flxture may safely pass, the apertures 16 may be eliminated or plugged, and in that case, it is proposed to provide a suitable absorbent pad (not shown) which may be placed in the channel 15 and which will function to absorb the drainage passing to the trough from the openings [3. To this end and also to facilitate cleaning, the forward end of the trough I5 is left open for insertion of the absorbent pad. This absorbent pad may be periodically withdrawn and discarded, to be replaced by a fresh pad. If desired, also, the aforedescribed drainage means may be arranged over or connected with an independent drain pipe (not shown), which may, for example, be concealed in the wall and which may in turn extend to or be' connected with the drain pipe of the washstand, sink or other available fixture.

In Fig. 4, I have illustrated a modification of the construction described above wherein the bottom plate 6 is formed so as to provide in each receptacle a concaved bottom surface upon which the soap cakes may rest. With this arrangement, the contact between the soap and the supporting surface is reduced to a minimum and space provided for drainage of the water from the cake to the rear of the compartment for discharge. It is apparent that there may be other modifications in structural detail and in form without departure from the principle of the invention.

From the foregoing description, it will be noted that a receptacle made in accordance with the invention combines all the desirable and essential characteristics of a fixture of the class involved. It constitutes a convenient compact container for a plurality of cakes of soap of the same or different brands. By reason of the inclusion in a single element of the tray, namely the base plate 6, of the dual function of supporting the soap cakes and of retaining them in the receptacle, the device has a material advantage in accessibility over the receptacles of the prior art wherein side retaining flanges are required in order to preclude possible accidental displacement of the soap from the receptacle. Its entirely open front materially simplifies selection, removal and replacement of a desired cake or brand of soap. In a space little or no greater than the conventional single compartment tray, it affords a plurality of individual soap-receiving compartments. By reason of the fact that it precludes contact between the individual cakes of soap, the receptacle contributes substantially towards sanitation. In addition to the above advantages, a multi-compartment receptacle of this character may be manufactured at a cost not materially exceeding, if at all, the cost of the single compartment conventional tray, and in any of the conventional types of soap tray fixtures.

I claim:

1. A soap receptacle comprising side and rear wall elements and a soap-supporting base element extending forwardly from said rear element and between said side elements, said base element being inclined upwardly from the rear element and terminating without obstruction at the forward end, partitioning means extending upwardly from said base element and from front to rear of said receptacle so as to divide the interior of the latter into a plurality of compartments, said compartments being relatively narrow and being adapted individually to receive and to support a soap cake in upstanding edgewise position, the front of said receptacle being open so as to afford free and unobstructed access for insertion and withdrawal of the soap cakes from said compartments, and said cakes when deposited on the base element tending to move to the rear of and being retained by gravity within the said compartments of the receptacle, each of said compartments having at the rear end 1. thereof a drainage aperture, and a trough located below the rear end of said base member and under each of said compartments to receive the drainage passing from the latter through said apertures, and means providing for discharge of 1 said drainage from the trough at a point forto rear of the receptacle so as to divide the interior of the latter into a plurality of individual compartments, each of said compartments being relatively narrow and adapted to receive and support an individual soap cake in edgewise upstanding position, channels extending longitudinally in the bottom of each of said compartments, a transverse channel at the rear end of each compartment communicating with the rear ends of the longitudinal channels, a drainage port in each of said transverse channels, the front of said receptacle being open so as to afford free and unobstructed access for insertion and withdrawal of the soap cakes, and said cakes when deposited on the base element tending to move to the rear of and being retained by gravity within the compartments of said receptacle.

3. A soap receptacle comprising upright side and rear wall elements and a soap-supporting base element extending forwardly from said rear element and between said side elements, said base element being inclined upwardly from the rear element and terminating without obstruction at the forward end, partitioning means extending upwardly from said base element and from front to rear and dividing the interior of the receptacle into a plurality of compartments for reception of individual soap cakes, each of said compartments being substantially U-shaped in transverse section and being relatively narrow so as to receive and to loosely support said cakes in upstanding edgewise position, the front of each compartment being open so as to afford free and unobstructed access thereto for insertion and withdrawal of the said cakes, said cakes when deposited on the base element tending to move to the rear of and being retained by gravity within the compartments of the receptacle, and drainage means at the lower end of each of said compartments.

4. A soap receptacle comprising upright side and rear wall elements and a soap-supporting base element extending forwardly from said rear element and between said side elements, said base element being inclined upwardly from the rear element and terminating without obstruction at the forward end, partitioning means extending upwardly from said base element and from front to rear and dividing the interior of the receptacle into a plurality of compartments for reception of individual soap cakes, each of said compartments being substantially U-shaped in transverse section and being relatively narrow so as to receive and loosely support said cakes in upstanding edgewise position and the bottom wall of each compartment being concaved transversely so as to normally support the said soap cakes in positions wherein the side faces of said cakes are removed from the compartment side wall surfaces, and drainage means at the lower end of each compartment.

EUGENE Y. GUI'HMANN. 

